


From Bleeding Heart to Bleeding Nose

by Rainy_Summer



Series: NCT SOULMATE AU [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Multi, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-08
Updated: 2019-11-08
Packaged: 2021-01-24 02:47:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21331012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rainy_Summer/pseuds/Rainy_Summer
Summary: Stalking lead to confrontation, confrontation lead to argument, argument lead to Renjun walking out, and Renjun walking out lead to him bumping the glass door.So yes, Jeno was still responsible for his bloody nose.A norenmin soulmate au where Renjun tried to enter an already established nomin relationship.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno, Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin
Series: NCT SOULMATE AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1556095
Comments: 18
Kudos: 410





	From Bleeding Heart to Bleeding Nose

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, this is me trying to get a break from my tales of kings series. Please enjoy this fluff. Thanks!

The last thing that Renjun really wanted was to be stared at in a public place. He knew it was impossible for people not to stare at him, them, because they had caused a scene that looked like they were shooting a hybrid of a drama and comedy sitcom. 

Renjun was sitting in the cafe, with a tissue smeared with red liquid pressed on his nose, not really a good sight to see for people who just wanted to drink their coffee in peace, but perhaps, the other patrons liked a bit of disturbance to their peaceful coffee break. 

"Injunnie, I'm sorry, " Jeno apologized to him again for God knows how many times already. Large hand tried to grasp Renjun's face to check the damage. Renjun swatted his hand and Jeno deflated beside him. 

Technically, it was not really Jeno's fault that Renjun's nose was bleeding. The cause was really Renjun's own stupidity. Still, the said stupidity was a result of Jeno being annoying so, there, Jeno was really the one to be blamed. 

His stupid soulmate decided that it would be a good idea to stalk him, while he was meeting a fellow music major classmate named Yangyang for a project. His jealousy kicking in again and controlling every part of his brain. Renjun was having none of it, of course. He would not take his fidelity being doubted. 

Stalking lead to confrontation, confrontation lead to argument, argument lead to Renjun walking out, and Renjun walking out lead to him bumping the glass door. 

So yes, Jeno was still responsible for his bloody nose. 

He sighed. Jeno had always been like that. Possessive. Jealous. Threatened that the people he loved would be taken away from him. 

He began to recall how he first met him. Them. 

♡♡♡

Renjun tried to run faster through the school corridors. The last thing that he wanted to happen was to be late on his first day on his last year in high school, especially since he would be attending a different school. 

Renjun, along with his older brother, Xuxi, moved from China to South Korea for the same reason. The name on their wrist. They both got a Korean name for their soulmates. As soon as Xuxi decided to move to Seoul for college, Renjun decided to tag along. Their parents decided to give him permission because as they ironically said, his older brother was not mature enough to be left on his own, thus he needed his younger brother Renjun to guide him.

The said brother was also the one responsible for Renjun running late. The said brother had luckily found his soulmate, the beautiful and soft spoken Kim Jungwoo on the very first day that they arrived in Seoul. The said brother had promised Renjun to drive him to school on his first day, but the said brother was busy day dreaming about his soulmate that they ended up turning on the wrong corner and getting lost.

Maybe he should at least be thankful that they did not get caught on an accident.

At least, Xuxi found his soulmate already, unlike Renjun who had not yet found his own soulmate. Soulmates. At least one of them.

It was a rare occurence. An abnormality for some. But fate decided to give Renjun two soulmates. A person named Na Jaemin and a person named Lee Jeno.

You would have thought that at this generation, it would have been easy to find your soulmate using technology. Renjun had tried looking for them in Facebook, but there were countless of results. He was not dumb and desperate enough to message all of them.

One of his cousin in China decided to look for a certain Nakamoto Yuta in a sea of Nakamoto Yuta in the internet. There were people who confirmed that the name of their soulmate was indeed Dong Sicheng and his cousin ended up traveling several times to Japan just to meet the Yutas but ended up wasting time and money. They were not his soulmate at all. Just people trying to have fun with people who were not their other half. 

Renjun would not want to suffer from the same thing. 

But he really wanted to meet his soulmates. At least one of them. Living in a new country with a different culture is really difficult for Renjun and he thought that maybe meeting a soulmate would make things a little better for him. 

He sighed. Couldn't fate just send his soulmates to him, make them appear out of nowhere, make them collide? 

A body suddenly bumped into him from behind, that sent him sprawling on the floor. Renjun groaned in pain and braced himself to glare at the person. 

He stood up and turned to the person who bumped into him. 

The boy with freshly dyed pink hair, or rather the culprit of the collision, was struggling to get up on his own and was being helped by another boy with ash brown hair. 

"I told you not, to run, Nana, " ash brown haired boy said. 

"It was your fault, Jeno. If you didn't try to bail out on going to the first day of class, we would not be late in the first place. " Pink haired boy, Nana, replied. 

"Then why did you wait for me? "

"If I don't, you will really end up not going to class. And if you don't attend the first day, you would end up not attending classes for the whole year, I know you!"

Nana turned to Renjun and just realized that he made the other fall.

"Hi, I'm really sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going." He apologized. 

But Renjun's attention was not directed at him but to the person behind him. 

Jeno he said? Renjun wasn't even sure if his surname was Lee but he had to make sure. 

"Are you Lee Jeno?" Renjun asked him. 

Jeno looked at him confusedly. Nana elbowed him and he reluctantly answered. "Yes."

Renjun's heart began to beat fast in anticipation. "My name is Huang Renjun. Do I happen to be your soulmate?"

Nana's eyes grew wide. "Are you for real? Oh my god, I'm Na Jaemin! "

Before Renjun could even process the new information, Lee Jeno spoke again. 

"No, you are not my soulmate, I only have one named Na Jaemin."

With that, he dragged Nana away. 

♡♡♡

Renjun ended up being late to class. He wasn't sure if he teared up because he was scolded by the teacher or because he had just been rejected by his soulmate. 

He was busy mopping on the school cafeteria, digging on a the very anemic spaghetti when a figure sat in front him. 

"Hi, " the said person greeted him. 

"Hi, " he greeted him back. 

"We are in the same class."

He eyed him intently. Chestnut brown hair, tan skin, deer like eyes. 

"You could ogle me all you want but your name is probably not Mark Lee, so sorry. "

Renjun rolled his eyes. "I was just trying to remember if you really are in my class. "

"You will not remember me because you were busy crying. Seriously, who cried when they get scolded by a teacher? What are you, a child?"

Renjun narrowed his eyes at him. 

"Hi, I'm Lee Donghyuck. " the stranger offer his hand which Renjun reluctantly accepted. "Huang Renjun."

Donghyuck eyes comically grew wider, reminding him of someone from earlier. "No way!" He said, not so gently twisting his wrist to get a glimpse of the names on it. "You are Nana and Jeno's missing soulmate."

"You know them?"

"Are you kidding me? I'm Nana's bestfriend! Wait, let me call him so you can meet them."

Donghyuck was about to dial on his phone but Renjun held his wrist. "I already met them."

"You did?" Renjun nodded. "When?"

"Earlier."

"But they did not come to school."

"They did. But they left. Because of me."

Donghyuck frowned sympathetically.  
♡♡♡

According to Donghyuck, Jaemin and Jeno had been inseparable ever since they met. The two of them were both home schooled for their last year in middle school. Jeno, because he was finding it hard to cope up with the divorce of his parents, and Jaemin because of the leg injury he sustained during grade school.

Their teacher, Taeyong, also Jeno's cousin decided that it would be a good idea to just let them attend his classes together at Jaemin's house. He was afraid that further isolation would do more damage to Jeno.

To his relief, the two boys clicked. They were soulmates after all.

But there's only one problem. Jeno became possessive of Jaemin.

"The start of high school was hell," Donghyuck told him. "I was Nana's bestfriend in elementary, but then, suddenly, this Jeno was all up in front of me, barricading Nana away from me, could you believe that? "

Jeno began picking a fight with anyone who would approached Jaemin. It became a real problem because whenever the latter would try to correct the former as patiently as he could, the former would be upset and start missing school. 

"Jeno is a bit better now, " Donghyuck said. "He's been doing some therapy. I can even get close to Nana like I normally do. But, " he paused. "You're different. You are their soulmate and maybe Jeno was afraid that you would take away Nana from him. "

"No matter how insufferable he was at times, " Donghyuck said after a while. "I must admit Jeno really had it bad. His parents were not soulmates so they ended up divorcing after Jeno's father found his. It broke his heart. He was close to his mother. Maybe that's why he was so afraid that people would take Nana away from him. Because his mother has been taken away from him. "

♡♡♡

Being the third person in a group was really hard. Renjun should know. 

He was the third son of the family, the first two being twins, Xuxi and Guanheng. 

Even then, Renjun would find himself insecure about how close the twins were. They were born on the same day. They were on the same grade level in school. They do most of things together. They have inside jokes that Renjun could not understand. 

Still, he knew he was loved by his brothers. Guanheng and Xuxi, no matter how loud they were, were really sensitive, especially towards his feeling.

They always tried to include him as much as they could, or as much as they parents would approved because according to Mama and Baba, two loud puppies are enough, let's raise Renjun as a well behaved cat.

When Renjun first thought about his soulmates, he thought he would meet them on separate occasions. He had not imagined to meet them together. 

Trying to enter an already established relationship felt like he was ruining something beautiful. He felt like the villain. 

He looked at the list that he wrote on his notebook as he waited for the teacher to arrive. He came to school early after what happened yesterday. He didn't want to be scolded again. 

Reasons why he should not pursue Nana and Jeno.  
1\. Because they are already happy together.  
2\. Because Jeno would be sad.  
3\. Because Jeno would be hurt.  
4\. Because Renjun would feel like an asshole if he hurt his soulmate.  
5\. Because he will only complicate things. 

Reasons why he should pursue Nana and Jeno:  
1.Because Renjun deserves to be loved by his soulmates. 

A hand suddenly tapped his shoulder and he abruptly closed his notes. Jaemin sat on the empty seat beside him. Renjun turned to the door, anticipating a certain ash haired boy to enter. 

"Jeno is not feeling well, so he will not be attending class today." Jaemin place a transparent plastic food container in front of him. "Do you like cookies, Renjun? "

♡♡♡

Renjun fell into a familiar routine for the last three weeks. He had already adjusted to his new school and had made some new friends including a freshman named Jisung who was awkwardly too tall for his age. 

Most of the time, his lunch break was spent with Jaemin, and sometimes with Haechan. 

Jaemin was actually a very likeable person, soulmate or not, and Renjun found himself really drawn to him. 

He couldn't help it. He thought he already lost his chance at first when he was dragged away by Jeno. But then, when Renjun saw Jaemin next, and he was given by the latter the best homemade cookies he had ever tasted (half of them were stolen by Xuxi tho), everything just magically started falling into place. 

They started hanging out together after class. They started knowing more about each other. Such as Jaemin wanting to play soccer in the future, and Renjun wanting to be either music or art major. 

They both enjoyed cooking, they did once at Renjun's place, much to Xuxi's delight because he's such a food black hole. 

In conclusion, Renjun liked Jaemin. He really really liked him. 

He had fallen into a familiar and comfortable routine that he had forgotten about the complicated relationship he had with his other soulmate. 

Renjun entered the room five minutes before the bell rang. He was already expecting Jaemin to be occupying the seat to Renjun's right and Donghyuck to his left, like the usual. 

But Jaemin was not seated where he used to be. He was at the very back with the now black haired Jeno sitting next to him. Jaemin waved at him, but Jeno did not even acknowledge him. 

He sighed and sat next to Donghyuck who gave him a comforting pat on the back. 

☆☆☆

"Is he just going to hang out with us whenever Jeno is not around?" Renjun asked Donghyuck. He angrily stabbed his sunny-side-up and let the yolk bleed on the plate. 

Donghyuck looked at the direction he was staring and sighed. Jaemin was on the process of feeding Jeno himself as the latter did not seem to have an appetite or at least a desire to eat on his own. Sickeningly sweet, Renjun thought. 

Jeno caught them staring and they both averted their gaze. 

"Jeno was having those days again, " Donghyuck explained. "Will not go to school without Nana. Will not eat without Nana. Will not do anything without Nana. "

"What is he? A child? Is Nana his Mom? "

"Might as well be."

☆☆☆

It was already months and Renjun was losing his patience. 

He could accept the fact the Jeno could never like him. Okay. He could live with that. 

He could never accept the way that Jeno is being a controlling asshole. Renjun liked Jaemin and Jaemin liked Renjun, too, he felt it. There's no way that he would allow Jeno to keep Jaemin to himself. 

He made his decision. Jeno could ignore him all he wants. He could pretend that Renjun was nonexistent. But he could never separate him from Jaemin. 

Renjun strode faster to Jaemin and Jeno's table, Donghyuck was following him, trying to balance his own tray of foods with his hands. 

"Is this seat taken? " Renjun asked, referring to the chair in a square table that was next Jaemin and across from Jeno. 

Jaemin's eyes widened in shock and Jeno glared at him. 

"Yes, it's taken." the black haired boy answered. 

"By whom? Your imaginary friend? " Jeno balled his fist. "The cafeteria is really crowded and we figured we should save space and allow more people to eat by sharing a table with people we know."

"Then occupy the table yourself, were done eating."

"Are you? " he asked. He looked at Jaemin's half eaten lunch. "Then you can leave on your own. Jaemin's not yet done eating because he was busy feeding you as you cannot eat with your own hands. Will you really be an asshole and let him go hungry until dismissal just because you want to?"

Donghyuck was not so subtly stepping on his toes to stop him from talking. Renjun endured the pain. Once he started, he would never stop. 

"Shall we eat?"

Renjun engaged Jaemin and Donghyuck in a conversation, like how they used to before Jeno returned. Not once had he addressed Jeno. He would not answer anyway. If Jeno wanted to pretend that he wasn't there, Renjun could do the same.  
♡♡♡

Renjun and Donghyuck also transferred to the seats at the back of the classroom. And maybe, just maybe, he made a big mistake. 

He found himself squinting too hard to read what was written on the chalk board, but to no avail. His vision was not really his great asset. 

Jeno suddenly raised his hand. 

"Yes, Lee Jeno?" Their Math teacher Mrs. Lim acknowledge him. 

"Huang Renjun seemed to be struggling with seeing from afar. May he be allowed to transfer in the front?"

"Well of course he may, " Mrs Lim answered. "I am glad that you are finally socializing with your classmates and that you are helping a foreign student who's probably still struggling with the language. "

My Korean is okay, Ma'am, Renjun thought. Jeno is just being an asshole. 

Renjun picked up his things to transfer to the front seat. 

"Thank you, " he said sarcastically. 

"You're welcome, " Jeno answered triumphantly. 

You won this round Lee Jeno.  
♡♡♡

After a week, Renjun came to class sporting a new black rimmed glasses. 

"It looks good on you, "Both Jaemin and Donghyuck complimented him causing Jeno to look at him. 

"Thank you! " he said happily, dropping his bag on the seat he had to abandon last week because of a Lee Jeno. "That way, Jeno would not be concerned anymore with my struggles."

"You could have picked a better frame. That one looks dated. " Jeno said sourly. 

"I'm surprised you would know that. Don't you like, you know, live in a cave? "

Jeno glared at him. Renjun glared back. They only stopped when Jaemin placed a hand between them. "Cease fire."

♡♡♡

"So, what are we going to do during the school festival?"

"I'd rather sleep all day. "

"That's a nice plan, Jeno, " Renjun answered him. "But I was actually asking Donghyuck and Jaemin."

"Nana will not attend as well."

"Says who? " Renjun asked. "You?" 

"We have never attended the school fest ever since. "

"Let me guess, because of you? "

Jaemin and Donghyuck's head comically turned back and forth at Jeno and him as they argue. 

"Enough!" Jaemin exclaimed. "I had enough of the two of you. I will make plans of my own. I will participate in whatever our class has in mind for the festival. "  
♡♡♡

The class ended up with a kissing booth. 

A Kissing Booth! 

"Who the fuck approves a kissing booth for a high school festival? " Jeno asked them angrily. 

"Well, " Donghyuck answered cooly, "You know Principal Park Jinyoung. Always the millennial wannabe. "

"Still, " Jeno insisted. "A kissing booth?"

"More importantly, " Renjun observed. "Why are you talking to us willingly?"

Donghyuck nodded. Jeno never talked to them on his own will. It was either he was being coaxed by Jaemin or he was engaging Renjun in a banter. 

"We must not let Nana join the kissing booth."

"He already signed up. We can't do anything about it." Renjun answered. 

"Are you not jealous?" Jeno asked. 

"I'm not you." He answered. "Plus, it's just at the cheeks."

"It's already hard sharing him with you, " Jeno answered. "Do I even need more competition?" He sulked. 

And well, as annoying as Jeno was, he was still Renjun's soulmate. 

"I don't see why this is my problem, " Donghyuck asked. "I smell something fishy and it's not the tuna sandwich I ate for lunch. I better leave before the two of you start planning something that would earn Nana's wrath. "

"Okay, " he said once Donghyuck left. "What's your plan?"

♡♡♡

"Why do I have to be the one to fake injury? " Renjun asked. 

"Because if it's me, he would already know I'm faking it, " Jeno answered. 

"Let me guess. You did it so many times before, didn't you? "

"Not important, " Renjun noticed the redness on Jeno's face as a sign of embarassment. "Make it look realistic. "

"How?"

"Just walk and then I'll trip you."

Renjun let out a loud yelp that caught Jaemin's attention. 

He wasn't even faking it anymore. Jeno would have probably given him a real injury. 

Jaemin came running toward him he crouched down to inspect his leg. "What happened? "

"I tripped on a rock, " he glared at Jeno. "A very stupid rock."

"It could be dangerous," Jaemin said. "Climb on my back. I'll carry you to the infirmary."

And maybe, just maybe, Renjun might have stuck his tongue at Jeno pettily. 

♡♡♡

"Are you sure he's okay? He looks like he needed a major operation to replace the damaged bone with steel. "

Renjun was pretty sure Jeno had just voiced out his fantasies of operating him, hopefully with anaesthesia. 

"He's fine, Jeno nothing to worry about. " the nurse answered him. 

"It looks like a fracture to me. "

"That's his knee, Jeno, " the nurse deadpanned. "It's supposed to be that way."

"Oh. "

"But it still hurts, " he said dramatically. "I don't think I can walk. "

"Then you can stay here, " Jaemin answered. "Jeno can stay with you. I really need to go because I need to participate in the Kissing Booth. "

"Walking would make it better, " Jeno said clearly disagreeing with staying with him. 

Easy for you to say since you wasn't the one tripped, he thought. 

♡♡♡

"Are you sure this is a good idea? " Renjun asked Jeno, holding a bottle of laxative with one hand, and a cup of iced americano on the other. 

"Just a small amount would do, nothing that could get Nana really sick. Just a bit of stomach pain. "

And Renjun was stupid enough to believe him. 

They watched as an ambulance where Jaemin was inside drove away to the hospital. 

Renjun felt sad and guilty. And then angry when Jeno suddenly shoved him. 

"It's your fault! " Jeno accused him

"It's our fault, Jeno, you were the one who planned this, remember?"

"I told you to put just a small amount, you overdid it! "

Renjun stood there in shocked. Then he shoved Jeno back. 

"You really are an insufferable person. No wonder you are always afraid that Nana will leave you. You are frustrating to be with!"

♡♡♡

Jeno skipped classes again and Renjun might have been feeling a bit guilty. 

Sure, Jeno was wrong, but it wasn't right to bring up his insecurity during arguments. It's foul and very immature. 

Jaemin sighed beside him, they were waiting for their next period teacher to arrive. 

"Is something wrong? " Renjun asked. Obviously there was. If there's anyone there who would be most affected with Jeno's absence, it would be Jaemin. 

"I don't know anymore how to divide myself." Jaemin answered. "I need to attend cram school. I need to attend my check up. I need to deliver Jeno's notes."

"I can take care of Jeno's notes," he volunteered. 

Donghyuck and Jaemin both looked at him suspiciously. 

"What?" He raised his hands defensively. "I don't have an ulterior motive."

He had a motive though. He wanted to apologize to Jeno privately. 

"Okay, " Jaemin handed him the notes and then looked at him with pleading eyes. "Please be kind to him. I know the two of you don't get along well but he's really sensitive, so please choose your words correctly. "

♡♡♡

The Lee residence was located in a medium-high class subdivision and their house could pass off as an executive of a semi-huge company's house in a K-Drama. 

"Jeno, you have a visitor! " Mrs. Lee, the new Mrs. Lee rather, screamed from the stairs. "I swear this child is really troublesome I don't even know what to do with him anymore."

Renjun smiled at her politely. 

There were several family pictures on the wall. Most looked like they were taken during out of town activities. 

Mr. Lee was there, his new wife was there, their children were there. Renjun tried to look for Jeno.

He's not anywhere in those pictures at all. Nothing.

Do people really have to shun him out?

His mind flashed back on those days when he deliberately excluded Jeno in conversations. He was already being casted aside by his family, and Renjun just had to do the same to him.

He felt like a terrible person.

"Just go up to his room, the one on the right."

Renjun nodded.

He climbed up on the stairs and knocked on the door.

"Just get inside, Nana," Jeno called back, voice muffled by the pillow.

He entered the room.

"I'm not Nana," he said, and Jeno immediately sat up on the bed. "What are you doing here?"

Renjun took the notes from his bag and waved it at Jeno. "And I wanted to apologize. "

"Forget it, " Jeno said. "Just leave the notes on the table and leave."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said what I said. About Jaemin."

"I said, forget it! " Jeno screamed at him. 

"But I can't just forget it. I know I did wrong. And I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have said that. Jaemin will never ever leave you. He loves you, you know that, right?"

Jeno grunted an answer. 

"And," he contemplated whether he would continue. "I will never take him away from you. I'm sorry for being insensitive for the past few days."

Jeno stayed quiet. 

"I'll take my leave now."

"I'm sorry, too, " Jeno whispered. 

If Renjun was trying to be mean, he would ask him to repeat himself. 

He wasn't. So he just accepted his apology. 

♡♡♡

Jeno returned to school the next day. Only this time, it was Jaemin who was absent. 

"Do you have any idea what happened to him? " Renjun asked Jeno. 

Jeno stayed silent and Renjun figured that he would not get an answer from him at all. 

He figured wrong. 

"His leg injury is acting up again. "

Donghyuck and Renjun looked at him in shock. They weren't really expecting him to answer. 

Jeno flushed in embarrassment. 

They decided not to tease him about it.  
♡♡♡

"Ah, " Renjun said, spoon in his hand positioned toward's Jeno's mouth. 

"You're not Nana, " Jeno said, moving away from the spoon. 

"Really? I haven't noticed! " he gasped sarcastically. "I still have hands because apparently yours are useless when it comes to eating. "

Renjun was actually expecting Jeno to be pissed off at him that he would start picking up his own spoon to eat. 

He had not expected Jeno to let him spoon feed him. Not at all. 

Whatever gets the job done, Renjun thought. 

Donghyuck chuckled amusedly.

♡♡♡

"Stop that!" Jeno screamed at him, desperately cover his ears with his pillow.

Renjun continued to blow his whistle.

"Nana usually just shake me awake,"

"But you said it yourself, I am not Jaemin, so I'll do it my way."

Renjun wasn't sure why he was doing this. He had to leave his house before the sun would even rise to travel to Jeno's, and then travel again to school. 

It was tiring. 

But Jaemin wasn't around and Jeno had no one. He had to make sure that Jeno would still be whole until Jaemin would return. 

"If you hurry up, we'll go visit Jaemin in the hospital after class. "

That did the trick. 

♡♡♡

"The two of you seemed to get along better than before, " Jaemin commented. 

"He's still annoying!"

"He's still insufferable!"

But Renjun felt no bite in their banters. 

"When will you be out? " He asked Jaemin. 

"In a few day, " he answered. "The pain's becoming tolerable. They are suggesting more physical therapy for it to really get better. Who knows? Maybe I could still play soccer in the future."

Renjun cheered for him. If there's anything that Jaemin wanted to do the most, it was to play soccer again. He hoped that he would get what he wanted. He really deserved it for being the nicest soulmate ever. 

♡♡♡

Renjun felt the weight of Jeno's head on his shoulder. For someone who was always tensed and stressed all the time, it was nice to see him sleep peacefully. 

Renjun pulled him closer. 

To be honest, it was really tiring to pick Jeno up and bring him back home. The bus rides were really long and Renjun was sacrificing much of his time. 

But maybe, just maybe, it was all worth it. 

♡♡♡

Renjun was excited. He received a text from Jaemin last night, saying that he would be able to return to class next day. 

He went directly to school, knowing that Jaemin would resume his job of picking Jeno up.

The two of them were already there when Renjun arrived. He was about to enter the room when he overheared them talking. 

"I don't like Renjun at all, " Jeno said. Renjun gulped, his hand on the handle froze momentarily. 

"I thought the two of you are getting along really well for the past days? "

"I was just tolerating him. I just don't want you to be troubled, so I acted like we're okay. If anything, I still wish that he did not appear at all. "

"Renjun! " Jaemin called him. Both him and Jeno were shocked to see him. "Have you been there for long? "

Renjun shook his head. "Why? Is there a problem?"

Jaemin and Jeno looked at each other before shaking their head. 

♡♡♡

"Why are we not sharing their table? " Donghyuck asked him. Frankly, he just didn't want to have lunch near Jeno. He had not expected Donghyuck to follow him. 

"Jaemin was absent for too long. Let Jeno have a private moment with him. "

"You're not going to bully him into sharing Nana? "

"I'm not in the mood. "

♡♡♡

"Looked who came to visit, baby brother, " Xuxi opened a giant box to reveal his twin brother, Guanheng. 

Renjun rushed to hug him and he cried uncontrollably. 

Because, God, he missed Guanheng so much, and one of his soulmate rejected him. He missed his parents and he had hoped that Jeno was finally liking him. He missed China and Jeno wanted him gone. 

"Baby don't cry, " Xuxi coaxed him. 

"How many times did you forget to feed him?" Guanheng accused Xuxi. 

"Thrice, " Xuxi answered. "I swear, I didn't know it would affect him that much! "

Renjun cried harder. 

"I think baby is broken. " Guanheng said. 

"Are you hurt? " Xuxi asked. 

Renjun nodded. His brothers immediately inspected him. 

"Where? "

"Here, " he said, placing his palm on the center of his chest. 

His brothers looked at each other knowingly. 

♡♡♡

Renjun was busy packing his things. Graduation was nearing and as soon as he got his diploma, he would fly back to China with Guanheng. 

"Your have a visitor, baby, should I let him in? " Xuxi asked him. 

Renjun figured it would either be Donghyuck or Jaemin. They were both sad when he told them that he would be attending college in China. He promised them he would keep in contact though. 

"Okay, " he said. A figure entered the room with soft and quiet footsteps. 

"If you are here to try to change my decision, " he said to whoever it was. "Sorry. You can't really do anything about it. "

"Can I at least try? "

Renjun suddenly looked up from the floor, surprised to see Jeno in his room. 

Not just any ordinary Jeno, but a Jeno with a giant Moomin plushy. He remembered telling Jaemin that it was his favorite character. 

"Hi, " Jeno greeted him. 

"Hi, " he answered. 

Jeno pushed the giant Moomin at him and Renjun hesitantly accepted it.

"Nana will miss you if you leave. "

He knew it. He was forced by Jaemin to come to him. 

"I promised him that I'll keep in touch. "

"I'll miss you, too. " Jeno continued. Renjun furrowed his eyebrows. 

"I'm sorry, I know you heard us talking back then. "

"Don't apologize for saying the truth. "

"But they're not the truth, " Jeno insisted. "I don't hate you. I like you now. I was just confused. For so long, it was just Nana and I. It was difficult for me to understand. And I was scared. I thought that you would take the only person who cares for me. But you didn't. Nana is still with me. And you care about me too. And I like you, too but I was stupid. I'm sorry. Please give me another chance. "

"That, " Renjun started, "was the longest speech I ever heard from you. "

He stared at him intently, checking for any lies. Jeno is very easy to read. There was not any ounce of pretension present on him. Still, he had to ask. 

"Are you telling the truth now? " 

Jeno nodded. 

"Okay," he said. 

"Okay?" Jeno excitedly asked. "Okay, as in you'll give me a chance? Okay as in you'll stay? "

Renjun nodded. "Yes to both. "

Maybe he overheard his brother's whispering outside his room. Just Maybe. He was still overwhelmed with Jeno's confession after all. 

("Put down the baseball bat, Guanheng, they made up. "  
"Baby is fine? "  
"Yes, baby is fine. ")

♡♡♡

Renjun wasn't sure for how long he had traveled down the memory lane. His nose already stopped bleeding and the blood on the tissue dried up. He crumpled it and made his way to the trash can before going to the counter and ordering a box of cookies.

He placed the box loudly on top of their table to get the attention of a moping Jeno before sitting back. 

"They're not as good as Jaemin's but I figured they'll still make good comfort food. "

"Isn't it supposed to be me who's comforting you? " Jeno asked confusedly. 

"But you are upset as well, " Renjun said. 

"I am upset with myself. "

"Exactly. "

Jeno stared at the box of cookies in front of him. He picked one up and started to eat. 

"Nana will be disappointed with me once he found out that I acted up on jealousy, again. " His boyfriend said sullen. 

"He will also be disappointed at me for not being patient. " He answered. 

It's only been a month since Jaemin left and they were already a mess. Their other boyfriend traveled to Japan for treatment and rehabilitation of his injury. He would be staying there for a quarter year which meant that the two of them in South Korea was left to take care of each other. 

It was difficult. Jaemin was the most level headed among them. There were still times when Renjun would still find if difficult to understand Jeno and the latter would find it hard to convey his emotions to the former. 

"Hey, " he said. "I'm sorry for not spending much time with you. I should have known that it would make you feel insecure. It's just that university works are taking up most of my time. It doesn't mean that I don't like you anymore. It doesn't mean that I will disappear. "

Jeno nodded. "I'm sorry, too. For jumping into conclusion. When Nana left, even though I know it was for health reasons, I still felt sad. My head is telling me that he left me even though I know that is not the case. And I sort of become scared that you'll leave as well. "

"We're still a mess together, " he said matter of factly. Jeno nodded. "But we're getting better. Sure we still make mistakes here and there but we are improving. "

"I love you," Jeno told him. 

He smiled. "I love you, too. "

They did not start the way Renjun had wanted, the way he expected. But he was happy to have them, Jaemin and Jeno, no matter how complicated their relationships were. He would not trade them for anyone regardless if they made his heart bleed once or his nose. He loved, and would probably love them for a long long time.

**Author's Note:**

> KUDOS and COMMENTS are very much appreciated! Thank you!
> 
> [Curious Cat](https://curiouscat.me/Rainy_Summer)


End file.
